From the IWMF Executive Director

This annual report reviews the work of the International Women’s Media Foundation from June 2002 to June 2003. I joined the IWMF as executive director in September 2003, after these projects were underway. It is now my job and privilege to lead the IWMF into the future.

Our next stage of development is filled with opportunity to build on past work and make even more of a difference for women around the globe.

In the past 14 years, the IWMF has broken ground by training U.S. women journalists to excel and lead in their profession and by bringing women from all corners of the world together to talk about the shared challenges they face in newsrooms that are often dominated by men. In Africa, the IWMF is known for its numerous training programs for women journalists who cover HIV/AIDS and is now in the second year of the Maisha Yetu (“Our Lives” in Swahili) campaign to enhance the quality and consistency of reporting on HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.

The IWMF is poised to begin new initiatives in Europe and Latin America and to launch a new fellowship program that will bring international women journalists to the United States to enhance their skills while working in U.S. media companies. We will also hold a week-long Leadership Institute for Women Journalists in the United States later this year. This program builds on one- and two-day seminars on leadership that we have held over the last three years. It is personally exciting for me to work with the IWMF’s committed staff and board of directors to create programs like these that will deepen our commitment to elevating the status of women in the media.

As our Courage in Journalism Awards make evident each year, the work we do to support women in the media cannot be separated from a larger goal of advancing human rights and supporting strong civil societies around the globe. In many places in the world, journalists are on the frontlines of the fight for the right to free expression. Their ability to report the truth should not be muzzled by death threats, prison sentences or any other means that has as its goal silencing independent voices.

All of us at the International Women’s Media Foundation are honored to be members of the broader community of individuals and organizations seeking to make the world a more just place.

Thank you for joining in our efforts.

Lisa Woll

Executive Director